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Thursday 31 January 2013

crafty photo scavenger hunt - january 13.

The following people have taken part in this month's hunt:

If you're taking part this month, please post the link to your post in the comments section or email me at cindersandrain (at) hotmail (dot) com!  I'll be putting my favourites up by 14th February.

Here are my January photos...

1 - Something I Made.


I've not made anything in the traditional sense of the word this month, but I have completely an overhaul of my BJD profile sites.  I do miss taking photos of the girls, I really should get them off the shelf more often.

2 - Inspiration.


It even says so on the cover!  I feel a bit bad, I have managed to cut off Nigella's head, but photography on crutches is quite challenging.  When I'm fully mobile I intend on making something from this book.

3 - Resolutions.


I'm home after my surgery and doing well (I think!).  I have a solid rehab program planned out for the next six months, I just need to stick to it and do my exercises like a good girl.

4 - Retro.


When it comes to retro gaming, it doesn't get much more retro than this!  I love the look of the FamiCom, it's a beautiful bit of kit.

5 - Motifs:  Sequins.


I bought this for myself as an early Christmas present, you can never go wrong with sequin lapels.  

Sunday 27 January 2013

this week.

  1. Winter sunshine - we woke up to brilliant sunshine yesterday morning, just what you need after a dull, cloudy week!
  2. Chorizo - I this may be my favourite cooking ingredient.  There's a picante variety that they sell in Waitrose, which I chop, saute and then stir into chopped tomatoes with garlic, olive oil and pepper.  It's amazing on pasta, and a really quick and easy mid-week dinner.
  3. Lunch with my parents - they came down to London today to see me before I go in for my op, and it was great to catch up over noodles and edamame.
  4. The HMV sale - I'm a bit gutted that HMV could be closing down, it's a great place to mooch around when you find yourself on the high street, but I won't deny I'm enjoying the sale.  We picked up the last two Battlestar Galactica seasons today for about £9 each - score!
  5. Imogen Heap's magical musical gloves - I can't stop watching this video.  I remember when she was recording Ellipse and would play us snippets in her video blogs, they would be so short and always left you wanting more.  To hear a new song in its entirety feels like several Christmases have come at once.

false start.

When I woke up on Friday morning, I thought that I would be spending this weekend in hospital.  I've been waiting for ACL reconstruction surgery for nearly two years now, and I was all ready to go in on Saturday morning to get it over with.  On Friday evening I found out that the admissions office had cocked up, and I'm actually going in on Tuesday morning.

As frustrating as the situation is, I'm actually feeling quite relieved.  We've had a brilliant weekend (last weekend was a bit of a non-event due to the snow) and I get to finish off some bits at work on Monday, so perhaps it's all for the best.

I still need to finish my CPSH submission - hopefully I'll be mobile enough on Wednesday and Thursday!

Sunday 20 January 2013

this week.

  1. Vows by Kimbra - I loved Kimbra's breakthrough single, 'Settle Down', but I did worry that she might be one of those artists where I lovelovelove one song but struggle to get into the rest of their material.  How wrong was I.  One of my favourite albums in a while.
  2. Friday evening - man, this week was looong.  Never before have I been so happy for Friday evening to come around.
  3. Snow - I can't help it, I always feel a sense of childlike glee whenever we get the white stuff.  I like it even more when it results in a 'snow day', but alas, no luck just yet.
  4. My HEATTECH leggings - I'm officially a convert to HEATTECH by Uniqlo aka Japanese magic.  Just what you need to layer up in this weather.
  5. The Hawkeye Initiative - The Hawkeye Initiative sets out to highlight sexism in super hero comics.  The challenge is simple, you take a panel displaying a female comic book character and replace them with Hawkeye from The Avengers, ensuring you copy the facial expression and pose.  If he looks ridiculous, you can safely say that the woman is being portrayed as a sex object.  The results can be quite hilarious.

Saturday 19 January 2013

wall candy.

One of the things I really dislike about renting is the inability to hang anything on the wall.  We do have a picture rail in our flat, but I'm not sure if I 100% trust it (that and it's currently busy keeping our fairy lights in place).  It's not too much of an issue though, as we don't particularly have anything to hang.

I've been thinking that when we do get our own place, it would be fantastic if we had a collection of really interesting pieces to adorn our walls, but I wasn't really sure what I wanted.  In talking to the boy, we eventually agreed that film posters were a good option.  But it feels a bit student chic, and I don't think the thought of paying to have something that is normally put up with blue tac framed.  If money was no object, I would search high and low for a set of Olly Moss' Star Wars posters, but there aren't any on eBay at the moment, and when they do appear for sale they're normally £1000+.  

This evening, I stumbled across a goldmine.  I saw two films last year that really took my breath away, Drive and Hanna.  I found them both so compelling, I loved the plots, the acting, the camera work, the soundtracks.  The studio posters are all well and good as far as film posters go, but I wanted something a bit more artistic and slick.  Google Images soon directed me to Society 6, where I found these beauties.


Drive II by FCRUZ | Hanna II by David Allcock

I've had a good rummage through the site and I pretty much want to buy everything.  As well as the two above, I love these art posters for two of my favourite sci-fi films.


Blade Runner Remix by Mark Drummond Johnson | Moon by Victor Vercesi

And of course, you can never go too wrong with a Star Wars poster set.  I really dig the simplicity of these designs.

Star Wars by Jon E. Allen

Now all I need are walls...

Sunday 13 January 2013

this week.

  1. Meteorite spotting - as I said yesterday, the boy and I saw a meteorite on Friday night.  Spectacular stuff.
  2. Having sealed windows - after a lengthy process we finally have windows that are sealed and can shut properly.  Just in time too as they're predicting snow tomorrow.
  3. Burton x PKMN - Hat Boy's Burtonesque Pokemon are fantastic.  I think my favourites are Pidgey, Pikachu and Jigglypuff.
  4. A Modern Teenager Interprets Modern Art - one of my friends shared this link on Facebook this week.  I read it on the train home and had to stifle my giggles.  I'm especially tickled by Raphael's The Parnassus and Renoir's Woman With a Cat.
  5. Our new slowcooker - we bought a Crock Pot with some of our Christmas vouchers last weekend and took it for a test drive this afternoon.  We decided that chilli would be a good first recipe to try.  My lips are still tingling slightly as the shaker lid for the cayenne pepper fell off when we were seasoning it, but other than that I'm dead impressed!

deadly in pink.

The boy bought me another Figma, Yuzuriha Inori, for Christmas and I got round to taking some photos this morning.


She really is a pleasure to photograph - for something that's made out of plastic, the fluidity in the design is astounding.

The rest of the set can be found on my Flickr.

Saturday 12 January 2013

seeing stars.

Last night, as I was walking up Sloane Street on the way to my bus stop, I saw a bright flash of light in the sky travelling north.  It lasted for a few seconds, burning bright white, then orange before it fizzled out in a little puff of sparkles.  When I got home, I found out that the boy had seen it in Brixton too.  After comparing notes, we decided that it must have been a meteorite.  Having looked on Twitter, it looks like some other Londoners came to the same conclusion.

I love space.  When I was a young girl I used to go to the astronomy club in the local village and I've never really grown out of it.  I think it's science at its most awe inspiring and beautiful.  So it doesn't come as much of a surprise that I can't get enough of space themed design.

Here are some of my favourite shops.

gemagenta


I've been a fan of gemagenta for a while now (her 'Lingerie' collection is simply stunning), but she's really outdone herself with her new 'Under This Moon' range.  

The concept is simple.  If you have an anniversary that you want to commemorate, or a memento of a special night, you send her the details of when it happened and where you were, and she will create a moon charm showing the lunar phase for that location at that time, with the date carved on the back.  I really want one, I just don't know what occasion to pick! 


ShadowplayNYC

I've seen quite a few shops selling space/nebula printed goods lately, but ShadowplayNYC really takes it to the next level.  They don't make up their graphics, oh no, they use images captured by the NASA/JPL-Caltech, Hubble Heritage Team.  The results are simply stunning.  I'm especially tempted by the Moon Infinity Scarf (pictured above).  As I've said before, space provides us with some of the most beautiful naturally occurring phenomenon, and these pieces show it off in all its glory.

Plus, bonus astronaut helmet photo...


Julie Nolan


I think I first saw Julie Nolan's work featured in an Etsy email promoting zodiac themed items.  She produces gorgeous, minimalist silver pieces representing different constellations.  I've often thought that if I were to ever get a tattoo I'd go for a star map, so her style is right up my street.

She doesn't only do the twelve zodiac constellations.  I really love her Cassiopeia cuff (shown above) and Orion pendant (below left).

Orion, Andromeda and Pegasus constellation pendants

Threadless


I haven't ordered anything from Threadless in a while, but having looked through their space section today I think I'm going to have to start saving my pennies!  I need the design above, Galaxy Tunes, in my wardrobe.  

Links


All photos are taken from the owners' respective sites.

Sunday 6 January 2013

this week.

  1. The new year - I know that some people feel a bit flat at this time of year, Christmas is over and we still have a few months of winter to get through, but I actually relish the feeling of starting with a clean slate.
  2. Joel Dewberry's Notting Hill collection - honestly, designer fabric is to me what crack is to an addict.  Love the stuff.  And this collection is pretty special.  I think I can hear the cogs in my mind whirring with crafty ideas.
  3. Steak and chips - there's nothing quite as satisfying as a well seasoned and well cooked chunk of meat.  I made us celebration steak yesterday to mark three years since we moved in together, and three years since I moved to London.
  4. Star Wars Scalextric - yes, this actually exists.  I think the 'Battle of Endor' set is my favourite.
  5. The school holidays - my morning bus journey to work has been blissfully quiet this week.

Friday 4 January 2013

project!

I've just got round to editing the photos of the quilt I made for my friend's baby girl, Georgie, last year.


I still can't believe I actually finished it.  And it looked good.  The photos aren't that great as I took them in a hurry, the natural light was hideous and we had this horrific green netting around the scaffolding outside our window, but I still find myself looking at them and pinching myself.


So I've decided to be brave this year and make a double bed sized quilt.  For keeps.  I'm so excited, I decided on a pattern the other day, created the mock-up in Photoshop last night (I didn't like the fabric used in the original pattern) and have just bought the fabric.  Squee!  Here is my selection.




It's part of the new collection from Joel Dewberry.  I used his fabrics for the first quilt and they were such a pleasure to work with.  I'm really looking forward to getting my teeth stuck into a new project.

Wednesday 2 January 2013

january goals.

  1. Try a recipe from the Nigellissima cookbook that the boy bought me for Christmas.
  2. Get myself/the flat ready for my surgery at the end of the month - this includes ditching sandwiches for green salads* and an early spring clean.
  3. Take at least two good shots of each figure in our small but growing Figma collection.
* I know that being a disciple of the Domestic Goddess and aspiring to eat healthily may sound like I'm setting myself up for a fall, but a girl has to live a little.  

out with the old.

I can't believe it's now January.  Where did 2012 go?  Rather than just sitting here feeling mildly shellshocked, I've decided to look forward to what the new year has to offer...

  • I go in for my *touch wood* final surgery on 26th January, so for the first five or so months of the year I'm going to be getting well acquainted with some physiotherapists and will become a physio machine.
  • The boy and I are hoping to dip our toe in the home-owner pond in the Spring.
  • I'm contemplating tackling a double bed sized quilt - I really miss the one I made last year, so I'd like to make one for myself.
  • I've promised myself that I will read From Hell and Gormenghast.
  • Hopefully this will be the year that I manage to contribute to the Crafty Photo Scavenger Hunt every month.
  • I'm going to finally man up and wear in my DMs.
  • I might be starting a post-grad professional diploma in the autumn - eek!
  • My wardrobe really needs a good de-clutter.
  • I really need to start writing again, even if it's just staying up to date with 'this week'.
  • We need to do more gaming.
  • I need to take Vera out to play more often.
  • I'm going to be brave and try out a few recipes from the Wahaca cookbook.
  • I want to start saving up to buy Persephone/Percy (a MNF Mirwen).

Tuesday 1 January 2013

crafty photo scavenger hunt - january 13 topics.

When Emma at The Gift Shed asked if I would like to join the hosting rota for the Crafty Photo Scavenger Hunt, I jumped at the chance.  I've been keeping an eye on this online project ever since it was first set up by Kiki at The Leopard Anchor.  Although I've not participated every month, I'm hoping that getting to pick the topics twice a year will give me the boost I need to really get stuck in.

So without further ado, here are the topics for January 2013.